Finely deposited lithium metal powder

ABSTRACT

The present invention provides a method of finely depositing lithium metal powder or thin lithium foil onto a substrate while avoiding the use of a solvent. The method includes depositing lithium metal powder or thin lithium foil onto a carrier, contacting the carrier with a substrate having a higher affinity for the lithium metal powder as compared to the affinity of the carrier for the lithium metal powder, subjecting the substrate while in contact with the carrier to conditions sufficient to transfer the lithium metal powder or lithium foil deposited on the carrier to the substrate, and separating the carrier and substrate so as to maintain the lithium metal powder or lithium metal foil, deposited on the substrate.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation application of U.S. application Ser.No. 12/954,988, filed Nov. 29, 2010, currently pending, which claims thebenefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/266,308, filed Dec.3, 2009, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by referencein their entirety.

FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a method of finely depositing lithiummetal powder on a substrate. Such a finely deposited lithium metalpowder may be used, for example, in forming an electrode for a primaryor secondary battery.

Lithium and lithium-ion secondary or rechargeable batteries have founduse in certain applications such as in cellular phones, camcorders, andlaptop computers, and even more recently, in larger power applicationssuch as in electric vehicles and hybrid electric vehicles. It ispreferred in these applications that the secondary batteries have thehighest specific capacity possible but still provide safe operatingconditions and good cycleability so that the high specific capacity ismaintained in subsequent recharging and discharging cycles.

Although there are various constructions for secondary batteries, eachconstruction includes a positive electrode (or cathode), a negativeelectrode (or anode), a separator that separates the cathode and anode,and an electrolyte in electrochemical communication with the cathode andanode. For secondary lithium batteries, lithium ions are transferredfrom the anode to the cathode through the electrolyte when the secondarybattery is being discharged, i.e., used for its specific application.During the discharge process, electrons are collected from the anode andpass to the cathode through an external circuit. When the secondarybattery is being charged or recharged, the lithium ions are transferredfrom the cathode to the anode through the electrolyte.

Historically, secondary lithium batteries were produced usingnon-lithiated compounds having high specific capacities such as TiS₂,MoS₂, MnO₂ and V₂O₅, as the cathode active materials. These cathodeactive materials were coupled with a lithium metal anode. When thesecondary battery was discharged, lithium ions were transferred from thelithium metal anode to the cathode through the electrolyte.Unfortunately, upon cycling, the lithium metal developed dendrites thatultimately caused unsafe conditions in the battery. As a result, theproduction of these types of secondary batteries was stopped in theearly 1990's in favor of lithium-ion batteries.

Lithium-ion batteries typically use lithium metal oxides such as LiCoO₂and LiNiO₂ as cathode active materials coupled with a carbon-basedanode. In these batteries, the lithium dendrite formation on the anodeis avoided, thereby making the batteries safer. However, the lithium,the “usable” amount of which determines the battery capacity, is totallysupplied from the cathode. This limits the choice of cathode activematerials because the active materials must contain removable lithium.Also, delithiated products formed during charging and overcharging tendto be unstable. In particular, these delithiated products tend to reactwith the electrolyte and generate heat, which raises safety concerns.

Furthermore, new lithium-ion cells or batteries are initially in adischarged state. During the first charge of lithium-ion cell, lithiummoves from the cathode material, such as LiCoO₂ or LiNiO₂, to the anodematerial, such as graphite. A passivation film that forms on the anodeis called a solid electrolyte interface or SEI, The SEI film is due toelectrochemical reduction of species present in the electrolyte on theelectrode surface. Upon subsequent discharge, the lithium consumed bythe formation of the SEI is not returned to the cathode. This results ina lithium-ion cell having a smaller capacity compared to the initialcharge capacity because some of the lithium has been consumed by theformation of the SEI. The irreversible consumption of the availablelithium reduces the capacity of the lithium-ion cell. This phenomenon iscalled irreversible capacity and is known to consume about 10% to 20% ofthe capacity of a conventional lithium ion cell. Thus, after the initialcharge of a lithium-ion cell, the lithium-ion cell loses about 10% to20% of its capacity.

One solution has been to use stabilized lithium metal powder (“SLMP®”)to pre-lithiate the anode. For example, lithium powder can be stabilizedby passivating the metal powder surface with CO₂ such as described inU.S. Pat. Nos. 5,567,474, 5,776,369, and 5,976,403, the disclosures ofwhich are incorporated herein in their entireties by reference. The CO₂passivated lithium metal powder, however, can be used only in air withlow moisture levels for a limited period of time before the lithiummetal content decays because of the reaction of the lithium metal andair. Another solution is to apply a fluorinated coating to the lithiummetal powder such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,588,623, thedisclosure of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety.Another solution is providing a wax layer such as described in U.S.Publication No. 2009/0035663A1, the disclosure of which is incorporatedby reference in its entirety. There; however, remains a need forimproved methods for applying the lithium metal powder to varioussubstrates for forming the battery.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a method of finely depositing lithiummetal powder or thin lithium powder derived foil onto a substrate whileavoiding the use of a solvent. The method comprises depositing lithiummetal powder onto a carrier, contacting the carrier with a substratehaving a higher affinity for the lithium metal powder as compared to theaffinity of the carrier for the lithium metal powder, subjecting thesubstrate while in contact with the carrier to conditions sufficient totransfer the lithium metal powder deposited on the carrier to thesubstrate, and separating the carrier and substrate so as to maintainthe lithium metal powder finely deposited on the substrate. Optionally,a thin lithium powder derived foil can be used in place of the lithiummetal powder. A battery including a substrate formed using such a methodis also provided.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above objects and advantages of the present invention will becomemore apparent by describing in detail embodiments of the presentinvention with reference to the attached drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a first cycle voltage curve corresponding to Example 7.

FIG. 2 is a first cycle voltage curve corresponding to Example 8.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. Asused herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of oneor more of the associated listed items. As used herein, the singularforms “a”, “an,” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms aswell, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be furtherunderstood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used inthis specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers,steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude thepresence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps,operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientificterms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by oneof ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will befurther understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly useddictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that isconsistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art andwill not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unlessexpressly so defined herein.

In accordance with the present invention, lithium metal powder is finelydeposited onto a substrate without the use of a solvent. The lithiummetal powder is in the form of a finely divided powder. The lithiummetal powder typically has a mean particle size of less than about 60microns, and often less than about 40 microns. The lithium metal powdermay be in the form of a stabilized lithium metal powder (“SLMP®”) suchas described, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,976,403 and 6,706,447,the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties.

If a thin lithium powder derived lithium foil is used it will have athickness of about 20 microns or less.

The lithium metal powder is initially deposited onto a carrier. Thecarrier may be a synthetic or semi-synthetic amorphous solid resin,cellulosic, glass, metallic (e.g., a metal foil) or a separator material(e.g., polypropylene, polyethylene or a laminate of the two). Forexample, the exemplary solid resins include polypropylene (e.g.,InteTopp™ Type AA film), polyethylene, or polyester films. Exemplarymetallic carriers include Cu or Cu alloy foil. In one embodiment, thesurface of the carrier may include various additives to improveperformance, reduce cost or to alter the affinity of the carrier for thelithium metal powder. The carrier may be in the form of a film, foil,mesh, or the like. The carrier often has a thickness of 10 microns to200 microns. The purpose of the carrier is to deposit or transfer thelithium metal powder onto a substrate. The carrier has an affinity forthe lithium metal powder; however, its affinity is less than that forthe substrate on which the lithium metal powder is to be deposited. If alithium powder derived thin lithium foil is used it can be applied ordeposited using the same procedure as for the lithium powder transferwith the appropriate pressure applied. Alternatively, a binder such asEVA, SBR, wax, etc. may be applied to a carrier. SLMP® may then beelectrostatically deposited on the carrier,

The lithium metal powder may be deposited onto the carrier via sieving,spraying, coating, printing, painting, dipping, and the like, theselection of which will be within the skill of one in the art. It alsocould be deposited using high pressure vapor flow technology, gas flowtechnology and the like that allows very high rate of deposition andsolvent free deposition using mechanical forces.

The substrate has a higher affinity for the lithium metal powder ascompared to the affinity of the carrier for the lithium metal powder.Suitable substrates may include carbonaceous materials, Li₄Ti₅O₁₂ andother lithium insertion material, Si, Sn, Cu, SiO, tin oxides, tinalloys, transition metal alloys, lithium metal nitrides, and lithiummetal oxides, and mixtures, and composites thereof as well as Cu foilsand other metal alloys. The substrate may be treated or contacted withan agent to promote affinity of the lithium metal powder for thesubstrate. Suitable affinity promoting agents include polymer binderssuch as ethylene vinyl acetate, styrene butadiene rubber, butadienerubber, and ethylene propylene diene monomer, natural waxes, such as12-hydroxystearic acid, synthetic waxes such as low molecular weightpolyethylene, petroleum waxes such as paraffin wax, and microcrystallinewaxes.

In operation, the carrier is typically pressed onto the substrate underpressure such as 100 to 20,000 psi. By using the affinity of the lithiummetal powder, a discontinuous layer of the lithium metal powder isprovided on the substrate. Additionally the lithium metal powder will bedeformed during its deposition.

The substrate may be in the form of a surface of an electrode. After thelithium metal powder is deposited, the carrier and substrate may beseparated in a manner sufficient to maintain the lithium metal powder onthe substrate.

The substrate may be used in a wide variety of applications wherein theproperties of the lithium metal powder are desired. For example, thesubstrate may be formed into an anode for a secondary battery such asdescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,706,447, the disclosure of which isincorporated by reference in its entirety. A typical secondary batterycomprises a positive electrode or cathode, a negative electrode oranode, a separator for separating the positive electrode and thenegative electrode, and an electrolyte in electrochemical communicationwith the positive electrode and the negative electrode. The secondarybattery also includes a current collector that is in electrical contactwith the cathode and a current collector that is in electrical contactwith the anode. The current collectors are in electrical contact withone another through an external circuit. The secondary battery can haveany construction known in the art such as a “jelly roll” or stackedconstruction.

The cathode is formed of an active material, which is typically combinedwith a carbonaceous material and a binder polymer. The active materialused in the cathode is preferably a material that can be lithiated at auseful voltage (e.g., 2.0 to 5.0 V versus lithium). Preferably,non-lithiated materials such as MnO₂, V₂O₅ MoS₂, metal fluorides ormixtures thereof, can be used as the active material, and morepreferably, MnO₂ is used. However, lithiated materials such as LiMn₂O₄that can be further lithiated can also be used. The non-lithiated activematerials are preferred because they generally have higher specificcapacities, lower cost and broader choice than the lithiated activematerials in this construction, and thus can provide increased powerover secondary batteries that include lithiated active materials.Furthermore, because the anode includes lithium as discussed below, itis not necessary that the cathode include a lithiated material for thesecondary battery to operate. The amount of active material provided inthe cathode is preferably sufficient to accept the removable lithiummetal present in the anode.

The anode formed from such a substrate is capable of absorbing anddesorbing lithium in an electrochemical system.

Other potential uses of the substrate include current collector forprimary batteries, high density polypropylene surfaces that could beused in fabricating of neutron detector parts.

The following examples are merely illustrative of the invention, and arenot limiting thereon.

EXAMPLES Example 1

12 mg of SLMP® was deposited on to a polypropylene InteTopp™ Type AAfilm of 50 cm² area. The SLMP carrier film was then lightly rolled usinga polypropylene jewelers roller in order to adhere the particles to thefilm. The carrier film was then placed into the contact with acarbonaceous battery electrode of 50 cm² area. The carrier film andelectrode stack was then pressed at 1500 lbs. Following pressing, thefilm was peeled away from the electrode depositing about 8 mg of lithium(about 0.16 mg/cm²).

Example 2

100 mg of SLMP was deposited onto a polypropylene InteTopp™ Type AA filmof 284 cm² area. The SLMP carrier film was then lightly rolled using apolypropylene jewelers roller in order to adhere the particles to thefilm. The carrier film was then placed into contact with a carbonaceousbattery electrode of 284 cm² area. The carrier film and electrode stackwas then pressed using a hand roller. Following pressing the film waspeeled away from the electrode depositing about 80 mg of lithium (about0.4 mg/cm²),

Example 3

SLMP is sprayed onto polypropylene InteTopp™ Type AA film containing anEVA adhesion promoting agent. The carrier film is then placed intocontact with a negative battery electrode. The carrier film andelectrode stack is then pressed. Following pressing the film is peeledaway from the electrode depositing a thin lithium foil layer onto thenegative electrode.

Example 4

SLMP with an EVA adhesion promoting coating is sprayed ontopolypropylene InteTopp™ Type AA film. The carrier film is then placedinto contact with a negative battery electrode. The carrier film andelectrode stack is then pressed. Following pressing the film is peeledaway from the electrode depositing a thin lithium foil layer onto thenegative electrode.

Example 5

100 mg of SLMP was deposited by a styrene-butadiene/BYK-P 104S intoluene in a ratio of SLMP:SBR:BYK of 100:10:5 slurry onto acorona-treated side of polypropylene film InteTopp™ Type BA plastic filmof 249 cm² area. After solvent evaporation the carrier film was placedinto contact with copper foil. The carrier film and copper foil stackwas then calendered. Following calendering the polypropylene film waspeeled away from the copper foil depositing a 26mm layer of thin lithiumfoil.

Example 6

48 mg of SLMP was deposited by a styrene-butadiene/BYK slurry in tolueneonto a corona treated side of polypropylene film InteTopp™ Type BAplastic film of 249 cm² area. After solvent evaporation the carrier filmwas placed into contact with an MCMB-25-28 (90%)+carbon black (3%)+PVdF(7%) electrode of 249 cm². The carrier film and electrode stack was thencalendered. Following calendering the polypropylene film was peeled awayfrom the electrode depositing a 47 mg layer of thin lithium foil.

Example 7

5 mg of SLMP was deposited by a styrene-butadiene/BYK slurry in tolueneonto a corona-treated side of polypropylene film InteTopp™ Type BAplastic film of 49 cm² area. After solvent evaporation the carrier filmwas placed into contact with an MCMB-25-28 (90%)+carbon black (3%)+PVdF(7%) electrode of 49 cm². The carrier film and electrode stack was thencalendered, Following calendering the polypropylene film was peeled awayfrom the electrode depositing a layer of thin lithium foil. The MBMB2528 electrode was then assembled into a pouch cell versus LiMn₂O₄(90%)+carbon black (5%)+PVdF (5%) positive electrode. 1M LiPF₆ /EC+DEC(1:1) from Novolyte was used as the electrolyte. Baseline cells of thesame configuration containing no SLMP were assembled for comparison.After assembly the pouch cells were tested on a Maccor series 4000cycler. The test procedure used was CC 12 mA to 4.3V, CV (constantvoltage) to step time equals 10 hours. CC (constant current) dischargeat 12 mA to 3.0 V. Prior to starting the cycle procedure the cells wereallowed to rest for 5 hrs to allow time for the pre-lithiation processto be completed. The Table 1 below summarizes baseline andSLMP-incorporated cell data for Example 7. FIG. 1 shows the first cyclevoltage curve for representative baseline and SLMP-incorporated cells.

TABLE 1 Pouch Cell First Cycle Efficiency 1^(st) Charge 1^(st) DischargeCoulombic Cell ID Capacity (mAh) Capacity (mAh) Efficiency (%) SLMP-191.45 84.46 92 SLMP-2 90.68 82.30 91 Baseline-1 92.94 77.84 84Baseline-2 91.54 73.84 81

Example 8

5 mg of SLMP was deposited by a styrene-butadiene/BYK slurry in tolueneonto Celgard® 3501 separator of 64 cm² area. After solvent evaporationthe separator was placed into contact with an MCMB-2528 (90%)+carbonblack (3%)+PVdF (7%) electrode of 49 cm². The separator and electrodestack was then calendered, Following calendaring the MCMB 2528 electrodeand separator were assembled into a pouch cell versus LiMn₂O₄(90%)+carbon black (5%)+PVdF (5%) positive electrode. 1M LiPF₆/EC+DEC(1:1) from Novolyte was used as the electrolyte. Baseline cells of thesame configuration containing no SLMP were assembled for comparison.After assembly the pouch cells were tested on a Maccor series 4000cycler. The test procedure used was CC 12 mA to 4.3V, CV to step timeequals 10 hours. CC discharge at 12 mA to 3.0 V. Prior to starting thecycle procedure the cells were allowed to rest for 5 hrs to allow timefor the pre-lithiation process to be completed. FIG. 2 shows baselineand SLMP incorporated cell first cycle voltage curves.

Example 9

100 mg of SLMP was deposited by a styrene-butadiene/BYK slurry intoluene onto 249 cm² area copper foil. After solvent evaporation thecopper foil was calendered creating a 26 mm layer of thin lithium foilon the Cu foil. Copper current collector plus thin lithium foil can thenbe used as the negative electrode in a battery.

Having thus described certain embodiments of the present invention, itis to be understood that the invention defined by the appended claims isnot to be limited by particular details set forth in the abovedescription as many apparent variations thereof are possible withoutdeparting from the spirit or scope thereof as hereinafter claimed.

What is claimed:
 1. A method of depositing lithium metal powder onto asubstrate without the use of a solvent, said method consistingessentially of the steps of: a) depositing stabilized lithium metalpowder having a mean particle size of 60 microns or less onto a carrierto a thickness of 20 microns or less to form a single layer; b)contacting the carrier with a substrate having a higher affinity for thelithium metal powder as compared to the affinity of the carrier for thestabilized lithium metal powder; c) subjecting the substrate while incontact with the carrier to conditions sufficient to transfer thestabilized lithium metal powder deposited on the carrier to thesubstrate; and d) separating the carrier and substrate so as to maintainthe stabilized lithium metal powder deposited on the substrate.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the carrier is an amorphous solid resin,cellulosic or metallic,
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the substrateis a material selected from the group consisting of carbonaceousmaterials, Li₄Ti₅O₁₂, Si, Sn, Cu, SiO, tin oxides, tin alloys, metalfoils, conductive polymers, conductive ceramics, transition metaloxides, lithium metal nitrides, lithium metal oxides, and mixtures orcomposites thereof.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein in step (c), theconditions sufficient to transfer the lithium metal comprises pressingthe carrier and substrate together.
 5. The method of claim 2, whereinthe substrate is a material selected from the group consisting ofcarbonaceous materials, Li₄Ti₅O₁₂, Si, Sn, Cu, SiO, tin oxides, tinalloys, metal foils, conductive polymers, conductive ceramics,transition metal oxides, lithium metal nitrides, lithium metal oxides,and mixtures or composites thereof.